Description

1B

O’Neill’s Garage Site of an old fish market

2B

O’Donovan’s Builders Yard Was the site of a Methodist Meeting House prior to 1821. The house and present workshop were used as a Boys Club in the 1950’s.

3B

West Cork Heritage Centre. Also known as Christ Church. Built in 1625 on the site of Carews Old Fort. It is the oldest surviving post reformation church in Ireland. The present tower and steeple were erected in 1856. There were many splendid memorials in this Church. The oldest being that to Richard Croft, builder of a portion of the Town Wall and Burgess of the Corporation in 1613, who died in 1629. The church was deconsecrated in 1973 and some of it’s furnishings was moved to St Peters, as well as Crofts memorial.

4B

Church Lane North The original entrance to Christ Church and is the only spot to have remained constant since the town was founded.

5B

Site of Old Devonshire Arms Hotel Daniel O’Connell addressed a meeting here in 1840. It was here also that the first meeting to promote the Cork and Bandon Railway Co. The hotel was used as a Black & Tan Barracks from 1920 to 1922, a Free State Army Barracks from 1922 to 1924 and a National Army Barracks from 1940 to 1945 after which it reverted to a hotel. In December 1922, the armour car ‘Slieve na mBan’ which had escorted Michael Collins at Beal na mBlath was stolen from here.
A large dancehall, The Orchid, was built at the rear in 1968 and was destroyed by fire in 1975.

6B

Old Vocational School Now Brogan Court Apartments, the old Vocational School was built in 1934 on the site of a former Bridewell built c. 1830. The school was closed in 1979 when the new St Brogan’s College was opened.

7B

The old North Constabulary barracks Also known as Bandon No. 2. The police stationed in this Barracks, once held running a battle with Nationalists during the Annual Commemorative Parade for the Manchester Martyrs en route to Kilbrogan Cemetery. The Barracks was closed in 1916.

8B

The Shambles or Meat Market Built by the Devonshires in 1818 to replace the North Market House. It had 22 stalls rented out to individual traders, a veterinary office and a market jury room. This fifteen sided building is a rare find in Ireland today.

9B

Site of Old British Cavalry barracks Built in 1700. It was built to accommodate 119 officers and men with stables for the appropriate number of horses. It was improved in 1750 and some buildings still exist down to the river. It was burned down in August 1922.

10B

Maid of Erin (Once on the main bridge) The Bandon ’98 Centenary Memorial was erected on Bandon Bridge in 1901 on the foundation stone laid on 26th December 1989 which still remains on the bridge. The statue was pulled down in April 1921 and the shattered pieces were dumped in the river. A new figure of Italian marble on a column of Dublin granite was erected on the original plinth. The monument was dismantled and re-erected at its site in May 1986.

11B

Hamilton High School Houses built for the Duke of Devonshire as the nucleus of a square in 1810, occupied as private dwellings and a portion of it by Bandon Grammar School from 1837 to 1957 when the school was moved to a new premises at Richmount. The school portion was bought by Sean Hamilton in 1958 and the other houses during the subsequent 7 years to make up the present school campus.

12B

Kingdom Hall Built in 1835 as the Bandon Savings Bank and survived until 1890 when the building became the Masonic Hall of Lodge ’84 or Ancient Boyne. There was a clock on the apex of its roof.

13B

The Courthouse Built in 1806 for the Duke of Devonshire who then leased it to the County Grand Jury. It was reconstructed in 1840 and again in 1886. It was partly burned in 1922 and reconstructed in 1927. It was again refurbished in 1989.

14B

The Town Hall The Hall was built in 1862 and was officially opened by the Duke of Devonshire on 9th October 1863.

15B

Coolfadda Mills There was a mill on this site from the time the town was established. It was in turn a Grist Mill, Wool Mill, Cotton Mill, and Flour Mill. Messrs Allman & Dowden had a new mill built in the 1860’s .
On the outbreak of WW1 a shortage of flour was anticipated by Joseph Brennan and he leased Coolfadda Mills. When America entered the war in 1917 there was a great demand for oatflakes to feed the troops and Brennan began to manufacture and continued to so for 50 years up to the time the Mill was burned in 1968.

16B

Bandon Electric Company In 1919, electric generators were coupled to the mill turbines and electricity was produced until the burning in 1968. A new generating facility has now been established and this is overseen by a local voluntary group, Bandon Charitable Resources Ltd assisted by the West Cork Leader Co-Op, providing free electricity to St Michael’s Centre for the elderly.

17B

The Footbridge The presented bridge was constructed in 1908 by John Buckley. It replaced a timber bridge built in 1853.

18B

Foleys Stack This chimney was demolished in 1995. It was built in 1932 to service a steam engine powering Foleys mill but before they installed the steam engine, they changed their mind and installed an oil engine instead so the chimney was never used.